The Project in Bangladesh: Gas, Forests, and Livelihood!

Abstract

conducted a case-study on a United States Agency for International Development (USAID)-funded participatory conservation project in Bangladesh - the Nishorgo Support Project, now called Integrated Protected Area Co-management (IPAC). The project began in 2003 with five designated pilot sites - Lawachara National Park, Rema-Kalenga Wildlife Sanctuary, Satchari National Park, Chunati Wildlife Sanctuary, and Teknaf Wildlife Sanctuary. In 2008, it became IPAC when it merged with an already existing wetland conservation project, Management of Aquatic Eco-System through Community Husbandry (MACH). The areas of operation of this co-management project fall largely within the hydro-carbon resource enriched north-eastern, southern and south-western parts of Bangladesh. In some of these areas, multinational extraction companies are already operating or are situating themselves to begin operations. Among those companies, Chevron Bangladesh, the US-based multinational is the most notable. Its extractive activities in the gas blocs 13 and 14 of Moulvi Bazar, Sylhet coincide with NSP/IPAC's nature conservation function at the Lawachara National Park.